A Family Affair

Sometimes you need a bit of goodness in your life to counteract all the little things that add up and bring you down. Not something great, just something pretty good. That's what brought me to Sparky's yesterday. I just wanted something pretty good....and I got it. The folks at Knox Brewing, a small family run business in Pacific Grove, California brew up Sparky's as a regional beverage. I was lucky enough to come across one of their 22 ounce bottles during my last foray to Jungle Jim's and I must say that I wasn't disappointed that I bought this brew. The Knox family have turned out a pretty good Root Beer, and that speaks well of them and the folks in their region, who have supported them by consuming enough of their product to make it a profitable enough business that I can manage to obtain a bottle in the Midwest.

Most folks are going to want to share one of these 22 ouncers with someone else, but not me. I sat back with my frosty mug and consumed the whole thing and have no regrets about it at all. Kevin and Carol Knox, (their names are even signed on the label) have managed to turn out a nice Root Beer. Like many Root Beers that are "Draft" style, it has a soft carbonation, in some brews this is a good thing and in some...not so good. It does seems to work well for Sparky's, tho. The taste of cane, honey and spices combine really well. While it doesn't list it I will hazard a guess that they have used some birch flavouring in their Root Beer, as well since it lacks a serious jolt of sassafras flavour. But, that's OK, too...it works in this case and the mellow flavour is nice.

If you get the chance to buy a Sparky's, go for it. You won't be disappointed.

Ingredients: Carbonated Filtered Water, Pure Cane Sugar, Honey, Natural and Artificial flavorings, Spices, Sodium Benzoate, Phosphoric Acid and Caramel Color.

Carbonation: Softly carbonated. Just about right, initially. But it loses the carbonation bite really fast.
Mouth Feel: Not creamy but not too thin.
Root Beer Flavour: Old Time draft style taste. Nicely spicy. Honey and cane sugar throughout.
Head: Sparky's has a head that dissipates fast.
Aftertaste: Nice cane sugar aftertaste with a hint of honey.
Aroma: Old Style Draft aroma. Light vanilla scent. A bit of spiciness.
Overall Taste: Sparky's has a nice all around taste. The spiciness combines well with the cane sugar and honey

Score: 6.5/10

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Root Beer, Sparky's